THE WIDOW AND THE PROPHET

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1 SESSION 9 UNIT 1 Women in the Bible Session Outcome: To understand the ways we can stand firm in our faith, even during turbulent times. Customize: Well is the password to access expanded teaching helps at SundayTeacher.com. APRIL 29 God THE WIDOW AND THE PROPHET blesses those who place their trust in Him during times of need. Discover: See the Illustrated Bible Life article for background on Elijah s arrival in Zarephath and verse-by-verse commentary on the scripture passage. THE WORD 1 KINGS 17:7-24 ome time later the brook dried up because there had been no rain Sin the land. 8 Then the word of the LORD came to him: 9 Go at once to Zarephath in the region of Sidon and stay there. I have directed a widow there to supply you with food. 10 So he went to Zarephath. When he came to the town gate, a widow was there gathering sticks. He called to her and asked, Would you bring me a little water in a jar so I may have a drink? 11 As she was going to get it, he called, And bring me, please, a piece of bread. 12 As surely as the LORD your God lives, she replied, I don t have any bread only a handful of flour in a jar and a little olive oil in a jug. I am gathering a few sticks to take home and make a meal for myself and my son, that we may eat it and die. 13 Elijah said to her, Don t be afraid. Go home and do as you have said. But first make a small loaf of bread for me from what you KEY VERSE have and bring it to me, and then make something for yourself and your son. 14 For this is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says: The jar of flour will not be used up and the jug of oil will not run dry until the day the LORD sends rain on the land. 15 She went away and did as Elijah had told her. So there was food every day for Elijah and for the woman and her family. 16 For the jar of flour was not used up and the jug of oil did not run dry, in keeping with the word of the LORD spoken by Elijah. 17 Some time later the son of the woman who owned the house became ill. He grew worse and worse, and finally stopped breathing. 1 UNIT 1: WOMEN IN THE BIBLE

2 Last Week: We examined the ways Abigail was a peacemaker and had the ability to see the bigger picture and work for the good of all. 2 This Week: We will explore the ways in which God is at work in our lives during difficult times. SESSION 9 18 She said to Elijah, What do you have against me, man of God? Did you come to remind me of my sin and kill my son? 19 Give me your son, Elijah replied. He took him from her arms, carried him to the upper room where he was staying, and laid him on his bed. 20 Then he cried out to the LORD, LORD my God, have you brought tragedy even on this widow I am staying with, by causing her son to die? 21 Then he stretched himself out on the boy three times and cried out to the LORD, LORD my God, let this boy s life return to him! 22 The LORD heard Elijah s cry, and the boy s life returned to him, and he lived. 23 Elijah picked up the child and carried him down from the room into the house. He gave him to his mother and said, Look, your son is alive! 24 Then the woman said to Elijah, Now I know that you are a man of God and that the word of the LORD from your mouth is the truth. Notes: ENGAGE THE WORD LESSON INTRO Today s story has a backstory. Ahab, the king of Israel, had married a foreign woman, Jezebel. Along with his wife, Ahab began to worship the god Baal, who was believed by his followers to send rain and ensure the fertility of crops. Enter the prophet Elijah. God spoke to Ahab through Elijah. God said that because the people had turned their backs on Him and looked to Baal for rain (which was futile), they would experience a time of drought. In the midst of the drought, God provided for His faithful servant Elijah. God pointed Elijah toward the Kerith Ravine, where the ravens brought him food and the brook provided drink. Eventually, even the brook dried up. This is where today s story begins. APRIL 29,

3 3 April 29, 2018 Watch: Dr. Carla Sunberg talks about the widow of Zarephath. To access, go to Listen: Learn more about the backstory of Elijah in this week s Illustrated Bible Life podcast. To access, go to Notes: DID YOU KNOW? Zarephath was in the vicinity of Sidon, a coastal town north of Jerusalem. This would have been a manufacturing and industrial center for the region. DROUGHT & DESPERATION GOD S PROVISION 1 Kings 17:7-12 Although the drought persisted, God continued to take care of Elijah. He instructed the prophet to travel to the land (Zarephath) among the Baal worshipers where he would find a widow through whom God would provide. Again, Elijah placed his faith and trust in God and went to where God led him. God told Elijah that He had directed a widow to supply him with food. Keep in mind that in those days, widows ranked among the lowest levels on the social scale. In fact, a Gentile widow would be the last person a Jewish prophet would look to for assistance. Often, God works through the least and last to bring about blessing in the lives of those who trust Him and seek His help. We consistently see this pattern in Jesus ministry as He aligned himself with those on the fringe of society people who readily acknowledged their brokenness and received His mercy. 1 Kings 17:13-16 The widow s obedience with her last ounces of food opened the door for God s abundant provision to flow. Her offering was similar to that of the widow Jesus saw place two small coins in the offering (Luke 21:2). Jesus declared the small gift to be the greatest of all. Being someone God can work through is not a matter of what we have, but what we are willing to give. God s provision in this story gives proof that Elijah s God did indeed live, as the widow said in her initial greeting. After long days of drought, hunger, and the threat of starvation, the widow must have rejoiced in a full stomach. As she poured out the oil and flour each day, she would remember the miracle this represented. Surely, she at least pondered the link between this provision and the God whose message the prophet proclaimed. 3 UNIT 1: WOMEN IN THE BIBLE

4 Discover: A widow and her son unexpectedly found themselves hosts to the prophet Elijah for three years. What brought Elijah to this pagan land? This week s Illustrated Bible Life article, Elijah in the Town of Zarephath, explains. 4 SESSION 9 Notes: THINK ABOUT IT The drought was a result of the people s worship of Baal. Yet, God chose to work through a widow, who probably also worshiped Baal, to provide an opportunity to demonstrate God s power and provision. POWER OVER LIFE & DEATH 1 Kings 17:17-24 Then disaster struck. As the widow had given God credit for the provision which they enjoyed, she now blamed God for her loss. We don t know the details of her life, but she assumed that God punished her for sin by taking her son from her. In fact, the prophet s presence in her home now brought her anger and fear of God s further punishment. But her vision of God and His character were misdirected. Although we do not know why her son died, we do know the woman had entered into Elijah s life and become a channel for God to help the prophet in his time of need. Elijah did not condemn her in her brokenness, but cried out to God on behalf of the widow in the midst of her suffering. When the widow was hungry, God provided food. When her son died, God provided for her and gave her back her only child. God was at work in her life during the good and bad times even before she confessed a faith in Him. The miracle of her son s resurrection confirmed that Elijah had spoken the truth and his God was the God. Elijah and the widow shared a story of grace. God is a God of all loving and compassionate to everyone. Regardless of what we are facing, God desires for us to turn to Him in our times of need and trust Him to bring us through just as He did for a starving widow and her son. REFLECT JUDITH SCHWANZ What are the needs in your life that only God can meet? Take a moment to recommit those situations to God. is the professor of pastoral care and counseling at Nazarene Theological Seminary, where she also directs the Doctor of Ministry program. APRIL 29,

5 5 April 29, 2018 Discussion Guide Connect to My Experience (Opening, to engage discussion.) To open the session, ask group members to recall a time when they were in need of help and someone came to their aid. Keep the tone light. Some examples might be changing a flat tire, getting stranded, or moving to a new house. Invite members to share such a story with the group, and be prepared with a story of your own. Close by sharing the following modern-day story of an unexpected outcome for a people desperately in need of help: In December 2016, after the long siege of Aleppo, Syria, many of those still trapped in the city had nothing left but despair. As bombs fell around them, they texted or tweeted what they believed were their final messages to the world. One father wrote, Guess it s goodbye. Thanks all who stand for us and pray for us. But it s almost over and they are just hours away of killing us. Another wrote: The last message. Thanks for everything. We shared many moments. These are last tweets from an emotional father. Farewell, Aleppo. There was good news ahead. The pleas of the people of Aleppo resulted in a temporary ceasefire, allowing for the evacuation of tens of thousands of survivors. But in those days before the evacuation, death seemed certain and hope was gone. What are the ways people deal with times of need or discouragement in their lives? How do we feel when we are in need of help? How do we respond when help comes? Transition: Connect to the Word Invite someone to read 1 Kings 17:7-12, then explore the following ideas: Today, we will look at the story of a woman who had lost all hope. She was trapped in crushing circumstances, and despair seemed the only reasonable response. Yet, somehow this woman found the strength to obey God, even in the face of death. In this scripture passage, the prophet Elijah found himself in desperate need of help. He was on the run from the idolatrous King Ahab and his wife, Jezebel. He was suffering through the drought that he himself had announced as the Lord s judgment against Ahab s Baal worship. The brook from which Elijah had been drinking had gone dry, and the Lord told Elijah to go to Zarephath, where He (God) had instructed a widow to supply the prophet with food. At the town gate of Zarephath, Elijah encountered the widow. However, instead of finding a woman well prepared to provide for him, he saw only more deprivation. In fact, the widow was in a place of despair, preparing to make a last meal to share with her child before they both starved to death. Zarephath was in Sidon, outside Israel and deep in enemy territory (Jezebel s home country). What risks do you think Elijah might have faced in obeying God s direction to go to Zarephath for help? How do we tend to respond when God asks us to do something risky? The widow had lost hope for herself and for her child. Based on her response to Elijah s request, what do you believe she was thinking and feeling at the time? How do we tend to respond to situations when we feel hopeless? Invite someone to read 1 Kings 17:13-16, then explore the following ideas: Elijah instructed the widow to go ahead and make the last meal for her little family, but to feed him first. What do you think motivated the widow to do as Elijah asked? Was it faith? Compassion? Something else?

6 INSIGHT Elijah doesn t come to the widow from a place of power, but as one desperate person offering another desperate person the means by which they could survive together. Invite someone to read 1 Kings 17:17-24, then explore the following ideas: Are there times when God asks us to take a step of faith, even during times of need and/or desperation? If so, why? In what way did God bless the widow s obedience/faith? What must it have been like to depend on God one day at a time? Imagine what a terrible shock it must have been for the widow to have her son die of an illness after he was miraculously spared from starvation! What does the widow s outburst (v. 18) tell you about her understanding of God? What does it tell you about how she saw herself? How would you have felt had you been in her position? 6 How was the widow changed by seeing her son restored to life? What does this story say to us about our reaction to God in times of need? What does this story say to us about how God responds to us during our times of need? The widow leaned toward believing in a punishing God who caused suffering and affliction. However, God s activity in her life was that of provider and healer. Do we still see suffering as punishment for sin, as the widow did? Is this faithful to what the Scriptures as a whole show us about the character of God? Why or why not? What can we learn about God s response to human need from this story? Does God always respond to our time of need the way we want Him to? If so, how? If not, why? Elijah and the widow enter this narrative both as victims of trauma, and both in desperate need. Their needs are met through each other: The widow saves Elijah by feeding him, and Elijah saves the widow and her child through God s provision. The widow is given the gift of participating in God s blessing through the channel of her own generosity. How has God used the places of need in your own life to help you learn empathy and compassion toward others who are in need? What has this taught you about God s character? Connect to My Life and the World End your session by leading the following discussion: Elijah and the widow became the channels through which God worked; the means of grace in each other s lives. The widow s theology (belief about God) may not have been fully formed, but she responded when Elijah asked her for food. She is a model of obedience in the midst of life s storms. What storms are you facing right now? Is God calling you to action? Might He be asking a difficult obedience from you? In the midst of our struggles, let us remember that God is not the one who comes to steal, kill and destroy (John 10:10), but is our Provider, Healer, and Restorer. Sessions 5-9 are written by Sharon Autenrieth Sharon is a workplace chaplain, homeschool parent, and lay leader at New Community Church of the Nazarene in Collinsville, Illinois.